I had gone grocery shopping and to avoid having to make multiple trips back and forth to the car to get the bags, I decided to take all the bags at one time. I slid a couple of the lighter ones onto my wrists so that I could grab a couple of others with one hand and hold a case of drinks with the other, holding it close to my chest to secure it. I actually had it, too. I began to move cautiously toward the front door. Thankfully, I had already opened it.

I had almost made it before I slightly stumbled after walking into the border that edged the walkway. I had attempted to cut a corner in order to make it to the door faster and I did not see the border. I lost my balance just enough to send the case of drinks tumbling from my grip.

In my instinctual attempt to catch it, items began falling out of some of the other bags, hitting the concrete. Some things were dented up; some things burst open and could not be used. I was so frustrated, because now I had to either replace the items that had been destroyed or do without them.

Inevitably, this meant more time and money spent. I fumed, but I had no one to blame but myself. In the midst of my fuming, however, as there is a lesson in everything, it dawned on me that sometimes having to make multiple trips, or take multiple steps in order to get something done, is the better method.

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by a task you need to complete or some goal you want to reach? Maybe the thought of all that it entails, the multiple steps, has led you to devise other methods to accomplish your task or goal that would eliminate those steps. Sometimes your methods appear to be logical and worth trying. They may actually even work for a while, but what if, in the end, they cost you more than they benefited you?

Whether you want to find a new job, or need to write a research paper, if you lack proper planning, you could find yourself in a bind. If you try to leave the job you hate, for one you want and your method is to leave and live off your savings for a few months until something comes through, you could run the risk of running out of money and having to find yet another job that you hate to help support yourself. Instead, break up this goal into small steps. Spend two hours each day job-seeking and completing applications. Enroll in a course to augment your skill-set and credentials for the job you want. Contact people you might know to network.

Similarly, break up that large research paper into smaller steps that will allow you time to be attentive to each part as you go as opposed to trying to tackle it all at once and run the risk of dropping the ball and doing substandard work. The less than quality work could have a negative effect on your grade and the "do it all at once" approach might leave you feeling burnout. While the process of planning, organizing, and writing a research paper might be daunting, it is not one that you should try to short cut. Most often, such an undertaking is best tackled in multiple steps or stages.

It is quite ironic that the way in which we attempt to save time and avoid steps or multiple trips can actually bring about more steps and the need to expend more time and energy. Avoiding process can sometimes leave us with regret. Regardless of your task, goal, or dream, break it up into steps, create different stages, and take multiple trips.